Love and friendship
by hanhanx-x-x
Summary: Kirsty and Kane come back. What happened between Drew, Ric, Lucas and Mattie? What happened to Cassie and Belle?
1. Chapter 1

Plot.

Mattie and Ric are going out. They are best friends with Lucas. Mattie and Lucas get drunk and kiss. Ric finds out. Kirsty and Kane come back to the bay

Chapter 1.

Mattie's p.o.v

"Lucas!" I screamed as he carried me into the water. He dropped me into the sea laughing as I screamed again. We splashed each other for a while and then went back on to the beach and sat on our towels.

"Do you think he'll ever forgive us?" I asked Lucas as I saw Ric watching us. Lucas looked at Ric who had started to walk away.

"I hope so" he said smiling sadly at me as we both remembered what happened.

"_Ric, please you have to come" I begged him over the phone. _

"_Sorry Mattie, I have to work I need the money." He said to me. I couldn't believe he was going to miss the party everyone had been talking about for months._

"_Mattie you don't need me, Lucas is going you can hang out with him" Ric said to me trying to cheer me up. _

"_But Lucas isn't my boyfriend." _

"_Sorry Mattie I have to go to work now. I'll make it up to you I promise" Ric said sadly. I hung up the phone and started to get ready._

"Mattie cheer up" Lucas said as tears started to form in my eyes. He put his arm round me and then pulled me up.

"Lets go and get a milkshake" we dried off and went for our drinks. We sat in silence sipping on our chocolate milkshakes.

"Hey you two" Martha said as she sat next to Lucas. I smiled at her.

"You ok?" Jack asked us sitting down next to me. Me and Lucas just nodded our heads.

"Come on guys what's up we're not stupid" Martha said looking at me. I saw Lucas look towards the corner of the room and I followed his gaze to Ric who was sat with his granddad watching us.

"Ahhhh" Martha said as she saw Ric. "my cousin still not forgiven you yet" Lucas shook his head.

"He's stubborn like you then Martha" Jack said

"_You ready Mattie?" I turned to see Lucas stood at my door. I nodded at him and got up. Lucas looked good, he had his blonde hair messed up and was wearing jeans with a black shirt that showed a bit of his chest at the top, he was popular with the girls. He took my hand and we walked to the party. _

" I_s Ric not coming then?" Lucas asked. I shook my head thinking about all the things he had been missing because of his work._

Lucas p.o.v

I lay on my bed thinking about Mattie. I could hear her crying herself to sleep. Every night I would listen to her crying and try to push away the regret we both felt ever since it happened. I lost my best friend and she lost her boyfriend because we made a mistake. I heard Beth go in to Mattie's room. I listened to them talking.

" Tilly, its going to be ok" Beth assured her.

" he hates me mum. I've lost him forever." She cried

" if Ric loves you he wont be able to stay away, you just have to give him time" they have the same conversation every night and I listen to it every night hoping Beth is right and we just need to give Ric more time.

_I was so close to her as we danced. Her eyes sparkled at me when she smiled. Her shoes were on the floor somewhere but we didn't really care we just wanted to dance. _

"_Come on, everyone out!" someone shouted again. Mattie fell against me as she laughed at someone who had fallen. I held her hand and we went outside we walked for a while and ended up on the beach. Mattie giggled as I fell over. She sat on the sand next to me and pulled her denim skirt down a little. I looked at her and smiled. She looked amazing. Her curly brown hair tied back off her beautiful face. She wore a black halter neck with a short denim skirt._

I went to the kitchen for a drink and saw my dad sat at the table.

" hey mate, what are you doing up at this time?" he asked me.

"I couldn't sleep what about you?"

" Same as you" he answered me. We both sat drinking water listening to Mattie crying.

" Do you think she'll ever stop?" I asked my dad. He looked at me sadly.

"If Ric forgives her she will and if he doesn't not for a while. She loves him and that pain will be there for a while just like yours. Lucas you can be upset to you know Mattie wont kill you." I shook my head at him

" I have to stay strong for Matilda" I said

"Lucas your best friend hates you and your other best friend cries herself to sleep at night and you have been through a lot, and your still trying to deal with it all" dad said to me. Beth walked out of Mattie's room and sat next to dad.

" I don't know what to do anymore" she said sadly.

"Do you mind if I go and see her?" I asked. They both smiled at me and I walked into her room.

"_Mattie" I said her name and she looked at me._

"_What?" she asked_

"_I think we are a bit drunk" she laughed at me and I put my arms around her._

_Our bodies were touching, my hand stroking her back. She smiled sadly._

"_What are you thinking?" I asked her_

"_I'm thinking about Ric and how he's always at work and I hardly see him." She answered me. I smiled at her_

"_Matilda you don't need Ric. If you were my girlfriend I would spend all my time with you" I stroked her cheek and she leant into me and our mouths touched._

Mattie's p.o.v

Lucas walked over to my bed and sat next to me.

"Why did we do it?" I asked him

"We were drunk, confused and you were upset. We weren't thinking." He answered me.

"After everything we have all been through together I didn't think anything could break us apart but we ruined everything and now we might never get him back" I cried. He put his arms around me and we cried ourselves to sleep.

_We kissed passionately hidden by rocks. I started to unbutton his shirt. I blocked Ric out from my mind. I loved him but he wasn't there and Lucas was. I wanted to feel loved. Lucas ran his hands up my legs as I touched his face, the face that wasn't Ric's._

"_Matilda, Lucas." we jumped apart at his voice._

"Tilly, Lucas" mum and Tony walked into my room waking me and Lucas up. Lucas got out of the bed and took a glass of water that Tony handed to him while I got the other.

"Are you both ok?" mum asked us. I nodded my head while Lucas smiled at them. We were as ok as we could be.

"Mattie do you want to go to the beach when you're ready?" Lucas asked me.

"Sure better than staying in" Lucas nodded and left the room followed by his dad.

"Are you sure you and Lucas are ok?" mum asked me looking worried

"Mum we're fine" I assured her. She left the room leaving me to think about Ric.

Me and Lucas felt bad but what about Ric he's the one who got his heart broken when he didn't deserve it.

"_Ric" I cried as I saw the look of anger, disappointment and hurt on his face._

"_I thought I'd surprise you by coming to the party but when I arrived it had ended because the police had stopped it. So then I thought you and Lucas might be on the beach and it looks like I was right." He said to me. Lucas buttoned up his shirt and stood up, he held his hand out and pulled me up as well. _

"_Ric, I'm sorry" I didn't know what else I could say to him._

"_I bought you this today. I borrowed the money of sally and have been working more so I could pay her back. It was supposed to be for your birthday next week but you might as well have it now." He threw a box at me, and then walked away leaving me and Lucas stood watching him. I picked the box up and opened it. Inside was a silver bracelet. On the back of it the words Ric and Mattie had been engraved on it and underneath that was the date we first met. I held it to me and cried because I'd always wanted something like that but now that I had, it didn't mean anything to me because I'd lost Ric._


	2. Chapter 2

_Italics are flashbacks. Some events did not happen on home and away. Some are base on what happened on Home and Away but have been changed to fit the story better._

**Chapter 2**

**Ric's p.o.v**

I sat at the table thinking about how fun everything used to be, the six of us together. I can remember every detail about the funeral, the end to all the good times, we'd been able to get through everything that had hit us but that was too bad. Me, Sally, Mattie, Lucas, Granddad, Martha and Jack sat together on the front row. We all cried wishing she was still alive.

"_Ric, Lucas, Drew, what's going on?" Mattie asked us as she was brought into the classroom by Dan. Granddad was sat at the front looking at us all. I put my arms around Mattie holding her tight as she stood next to me. _

"_Cassie was in accident this morning with Macca." Granddad said slowly. We were all silent waiting for him to carry on. _

"_They were on there way back from the city as you know but didn't arrive this morning. When you guys went to school Sally started to get a bit worried and asked Jack to check it out. Jack did and he came to our house with Martha. When they were nearly here there was an accident with another car. The driver was drunk. They ran there car into the side of Macca's and Cassie's and it killed them instantly. There was nothing they could have done about it they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."_

I remember how close we were how we spent all our time together. Mattie kept me going after Cassie's death. It was hard for all of us but we got through it somehow with each others help.

_I hugged Mattie and we both cried. Lucas put his head in his hands._

"_This cant be happening!" Mattie shouted knocking a chair over as she walked past it to where granddad and Dan were standing. She fell to the ground as she cried. Lucas went over and sat down hugging her. I watched them thinking about Cassie. _

"_She was our best friend how are we supposed to go on without her." Lucas said_

_The door opened as sally, Beth and Tony ran in. I stood hugging sally as we cried both thinking about how we had lost Flynn and now Cassie as well. Lucas hugged his dad while Beth watched her daughter run out of the room._

I hugged sally and left to meet Martha.

"Hey Ric" she said as I sat next to her on the beach. I smiled at her and tried to show her I was fine but she could see through my act.

"Ric why don't you give them another chance?" she asked watching me carefully.

"You know how much I loved Mattie and Lucas was my best friend. I relied on them and trusted them and they ruined that. If Mattie really loved me and Lucas cared for me they would not have got together that night" I answered

"But they do love you. They made a mistake. They were drunk Mattie was upset you weren't there it just happened they didn't want it to. Don't you think they have been through enough? Did you know Mattie has cried herself to sleep every night since your brake up and that Lucas sits in his room listening while Beth tries to calm her down?" I looked away from her so she couldn't see the tears in my eyes. It hurt so much thinking about how Matilda was feeling but if I gave her another chance what if she just broke my heart again.

"_Matilda!" I shouted as I ran outside after her. She stopped running and turned to face me. I wrapped my arms around her and held her up of the ground. _

"_Ric she can't be dead what are we going to do without her?" she cried. I thought about everything she had done for us._

"_It will be ok Mattie" I said as we both fell to the ground. She shook her head and we cried until Beth and Sally came out to us. We stood up but Mattie fell back to the ground again. Beth wiped away the tears she had shed as she watched her daughter. I carried her to the car and put her into it as she cried silently._

"Ric you know Matilda can't deal with stress anymore. When she found out about Cassie she couldn't walk she was crying so much. You know that ever since my wedding and how she ended up ill she hasn't been able to deal with bad things. Think about what you're doing to her Ric please. You've got to talk to her and Lucas, they deserve it." I could hear how desperate Martha was and I knew she was right. I knew Matilda and Lucas didn't want to hurt me but they did.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for the reviews!!!**

**Chapter 3.**

**Mattie's P.O.V**

I walked along the beach crying silently. I loved the beach but it bought back so many memories. Memories of us all having fun. We were meant to be best friends forever.

"_Ric!" Cassie shouted. I screamed as Ric grabbed hold of me and knocked me to the ground. Cassie and Lucas watched as we lay on the warm grains of sand._

"_Ric" Cassie said quieter._

"_What?" he asked._

"_Look at the time we were meant to be home 10 minutes ago" Cassie told him_

"_Oh no. I can't bear it. How can I leave such a pretty young girl?" Ric asked pointing to me._

"_Don't worry. I'll wait for you. Forever if I have to. I love you" I said making them all laugh._

"_Come on Ric. Leave the drama queen with Lucas and you can carry on flirting with her tonight" Cassie said as she pulled him away._

"_Me and Mattie. Flirt? Never" Ric said trying to keep a straight face as he was pulled away._

We used to have so much fun together.

"Mattie!" I heard someone shout my name and looked around for the female that said it.

"Matilda, over here!" This time it was a male's voice and as I finally found the speakers I screamed. They both ran up to me and knocked me over in a big hug.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked

"Well Kane was dropped of his charges so we didn't have to run anymore and we wanted to come and see you all" Kirsty told her.

"What about the baby?" Mattie asked quietly. Kirsty smiled at Kane proudly.

"We had a boy called Chris who is now at Irene's resting. We went there first and then we left Chris there to come and see you and everyone else" Kane said

"Matilda, are you ok?" Kirsty asked noticing her red puffy eyes.

"Yeah I'm fine there's no need to bother you with all my problems when you've only just got back"

"_You like him don't you?" Lucas asked later on that day._

"_Who?" I asked._

"_Ric" he said. I tried to deny it even though I could feel my cheeks going red._

"_I'm sure he likes you too" Lucas told me. _

"_Don't be stupid, Lucas. Me and Ric have been best friends for ages of course he doesn't like me. He's probably still in love with Cassie" _

"_You're the one being stupid. Ric's been in love with you for ages, even when he was with Cassie" I couldn't help but smile at Lucas as I thought maybe there was a chance for me and Ric._

"So do you want to go and see my mum?" I asked Kirsty and Kane. I led them into 'Noah's' where I was deafened by many shrieks as Beth, Leah and Sally all ran over.

"Its so good to see you all" Kirsty cried as her and Kane hugged each person. Soon Lucas and Tony headed over to see over to see what the fuss was about.

"Hey Kirsty, Kane this is Tony and Lucas" I said.

"Tony is my partner and Lucas is his son" Beth informed them. Kirsty greeted Lucas and then Tony. Kane gave a worried glance at Beth then Tony before looking at me. I gave him a smile to let him know Tony would never hurt mum.

**Ric's p.o.v**

I saw Mattie give Kane a smile to let him know Tony was ok before Kane finally

greeted them warmly. I remember so well when there family were torn apart.

"_Ric!" Mattie shouted as she ran up to me. I hugged her and let her cry into my shoulder._

"_What's wrong?" I asked her._

"_It's Rhys, he's left mum" she cried_

"_What? Why?" I asked_

"_He cheated on her with Shelley his ex and now he's left mum for her."_

"_I cant believe he'd do that" I said_

"_Me and Henry never liked him but mums devastated. I would so much rather of put up with him for the rest of my life then see her like this" she told me as I stroked her back to calm her down._

Matilda looked over at me and I turned away from them all. I could tell Matilda had been crying and she looked so down and pale. I knew what I was doing was killing her but I was scared to trust her again.

"Who are they?" Martha asked.

"Kane and Kirsty" I told her. She gave me a puzzled look.

"Remember Kirsty Sutherland, Beth's ex husband's daughter. They are the ones who lived with Irene before going on the run from the police"

"Oh yeah" she smiled at them

"Tasha talked about them a lot"

"_I don't know what to do" she cried_

"_Just be there for her and that's enough." I assured her. I took her hand and began to walk her home._

"_How can he do this to her!" We stopped walking as we heard the shouting._

"_I'm sorry. He didn't mean to hurt her" a female voice shouted._

"_That's Danni and Scott" Matilda whispered_

"_Danni, he's leaving her how can he not want to hurt her"_

"_Come on Scott, would you rather she found out later on in life that he never loved her and was just living a lie."_

"_But he should have loved her. He's broken her heart. Now me, Kit, Robbie, Henry and Tilly have to try and put it back together for her and for us."_

"I didn't think I'd see those two around here again. Come on you two we have to go and talk to them" Granddad said to me and Martha. We both got up and headed over. Sally and Leah were now both sat down whilst Kirsty and Kane were stood with Beth, Tony, Lucas and Mattie. Jack headed through the door just in time to be introduced to them.

"Mr. Stewart!" Kirsty cried.

"Kirsty, Kane" Alf greeted them.

"This is my oldest son, Jack." Tony said pointing to him

"And this is Jacks wife and my granddaughter Martha and my grandson Ric who you've met before" Kirsty and Kane greeted us but as they began to talk I ran out quickly. I couldn't deal with talking and acting all normal whilst Lucas and Mattie were stood there.

Lucas p.o.v

Everyone watched as Ric ran out and then we looked at each other.

"Is it something we did?" Kane asked.

"no its something I did" Mattie said before running out in tears.

"do you mind if I go after her?" Kirsty asked. We all nodded and she ran after her.

"I might go and have a walk, I'll see you guys soon" Kane told us before also leaving. Beth smiled sadly at me.

"_Hey Cassie" I said to her. She smiled up at me._

"_Mattie admitted that she liked Ric yesterday" I told her_

"_What she actually told you?" Cassie asked._

"_Yeah, so how long have you known?"_

"_She told me after me and Ric broke up"_

"_The same time Ric told me about his feelings for her"_

"_Do you think they will ever admit it?" Cassie asked me_

"Poor thing" Dad said.

"After everything those kids have been through it's sad to see them like this" Alf said. I sat on the table next to them with Martha and Jack.

"Hey mate, are you ok?" Jack asked me

"I'm just thinking of me and Cassie when we tried to get Ric and Mattie together by dropping loads of hints" I smiled at the memory.

"_So Ric, now you and Mattie are back together are you feeling happier?" Cassie asked. She was sat on a couch with me whilst Ric and Mattie were sat opposite us. Mattie blushed and Ric smirked._

"_I'm very happy" Ric said as he put his arm around her._

"_Awwwww" Cassie said. _

"_You two would make a cute couple" I told them. Ric and Mattie both laughed nervously._

"_Yeah, Mattie can have Ric and I'll have Lucas" Cassie announced as she snuggled up to me. We all laughed and began to watch a film._

"You miss Cassie don't you?" Martha asked.

"We all do, we were all so close" I told them. Jack nodded as Martha began to cry.

"I miss her too and Macca" Martha whispered.

"I just wish there was something I could do for Mattie" I told them.

"We all do" Jack said.

"Even Ric. He'll come round eventually you know" Martha told me.

"I'm not so sure"

_Cassie had fallen asleep on my shoulder whilst Mattie and Ric were still huddled together on the other couch. Ric was twirling Matilda's hair around in his fingers whilst she had moved herself so she was lay on top of him with her head resting on his chest. They weren't taking much notice of the film. They were sat with slight smiles on there face looking as if they never wanted to move. I shook Cassie gently to wake her. She smiled slightly as she saw Ric and Mattie and then she cuddled up to me tighter and we both fell to sleep._


	4. Chapter 4

**Ric's p.o.v**

"Hey, it's Ric right?" he asked.

"Yeah" Kane sat down next to me.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

"Yeah I just needed to get outside"

"Or away from someone. Come on mate I'm not stupid. You might as well just tell me what's going on" Kane said.

"_Ric when can we start to be seen together?" Mattie asked._

"_I told you not to call me Ric, its Dalby and I don't know"_

"_You let me call you Ric last week"_

"_You were crying I wanted to make sure you were ok"_

"_Yeah ok, and thanks for that, you really made me feel better."_

"_Anytime" I told her._

"_But it's not anytime Dalby, it's just when your alone or late at night"_

"I used to date Matilda. Our other best friend died and loads of other stuff happened then Mattie cheated on me with one of our best friends Lucas. And now I cant trust them."

"That's gotta hurt" Kane said. I nodded my head.

"_Hey Dalby!" My mates shouted as I headed over to them. I saw Henry stood at his locker giving me the evils. If only he knew his precious twin sister came to seem me every night. I noticed Mattie wasn't there but I didn't think anything of it. My mates all pointed to something behind me and they started whispering and laughing. I turned to see Mattie. She was crying and was pale. She had scratch marks all over her face, arms and legs and she was bleeding. Her uniform was ripped as well. I looked over at Henry but he had gone._

"I never used to like Matilda. She acted like a spoilt brat. But Kirst told me to give her a chance and that deep inside she was just sad and lonely" Kane told me.

"She was right as well. Mattie's different now though. She's kind, caring, smart, loving, and helpful and just such an amazing person" I told him automatically.

"Then why don't you forgive her?" He asked.

"I can't" I told him.

"Because you're scared? Or your to stubborn? Or are you trying to act all manly and pretend like you don't need them or care? Whatever it is man I can tell you still love her and you need to sort it out"

"_Ric!" she cried. Everyone turned to look at me. I didn't care that she had called me Ric or that she had spoken to me in front of people. I t didn't matter I just wanted to make sure she was ok. I ran over and hugged her as she cried. People gathered round to watch. Matilda passed out in my arms as I begged people to get help. I gently moved onto the floor laying her head on my knee. Eventually Mrs. Fletcher turned up with Henry to see what the fuss was about._

**Mattie's p.o.v**

"Hey, Matilda are you ok?" Kirsty asked me. I shook my head.

"That boy Ric he lives with Sally and Flynn doesn't he?" she asked.

"No just Sally"

"What happened to Flynn?" She asked me

"He died"

"_Mattie, what am I going to do without him?" he asked._

"_I'm so sorry Ric" I told him as he cried into my shoulder._

"_He was the best dad I could ever ask for"_

"_I know Ric and I'm going to help you get through this" I told him_

"_How? You don't know how I'm feeling?" he shouted_

"_Don't even think about talking to me like that! I lost my dad too you know?"_

"_You hated your dad"_

"_That didn't mean that I wanted him to die. I loved him, he was my dad I never wanted anything to happen to him" Mattie cried._

"What? How?" Kirsty asked beginning to cry.

"He had cancer" I told her.

"After everything he did for Kane I wish we could have been there for him"

"Don't worry he had enough people to help him and he had the best last few moths ever" I informed her

"I'm glad but what happened with you and Ric?" she asked

"_Mattie, I love you so much, you such a good friend and I'm sorry for what I said about your dad" Ric cried._

"_Your just upset Ric and I'm gonna be here for you every step of the way. Me, you, Cassie and Lucas, we are gonna stick together forever" I was happy to see him smiling slightly._

"_The best thing I ever did was make friends with you. You saved me by opening my heart." He told me_

"_And you saved me too. I was so selfish, spoilt, lonely and unhappy, you opened the real me." I put my arms around him and we sat together crying._

"He was my best friend, Kirsty. I loved him so much but after Cassie died things were hard. At first we were so close but then we started to drift apart. I t got near my birthday and I wanted everything back to normal but he started working more. Me and Lucas went to a party and we were drunk, sad, lonely and confused. We started kissing and stuff but Ric caught us. The reason he was working so much because he had bought me the most perfect birthday present ever. I didn't mean to hurt him but I did." Kirsty held me as I cried again.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: thanks for reading and reviewing my story. If anybody has any tips or ideas for the story they will be very helpful!!**

**Lucas p.o.v**

"_Dad, how can this have happened?" I cried._

"_I'm so sorry Lucas"_

"_Cassie was our best friend. Don't you think we've been through enough?" I shouted_.

"_Yes you have son, you've all been through so much and you're going to get through this as well" he held me in his arms as I cried._

"Lucas" she whispered my name.

"What?" I asked softly.

"Are you ok?" she asked me. Typical Mattie, she was stood there crying but she wanted to know if I was ok.

"You can tell me you know, I'm not going to hate you for crying. I just want to help you" I felt a tear escape my eyes and as she saw it she rushed over and wrapped me in her arms.

"It's just all so hard" I told her.

"I know Lucas but we are going to get through this. We have each other and our family and other friends. We'll be ok."

"But we don't have Ric or Cassie or any of the others"

"_I have to stay strong for the others" I told him._

"_Come on Lucas they don't expect you to stay strong" Dad said_

"_Yeah but I want to be there for them"_

"_Lucas, can I talk to you?" I turned to Ric at the door. Dad left as Ric came in. Tears were rolling down his cheeks as he sat down on a chair._

"I miss them too" Mattie whispered.

"Do you think things will get better?" I asked her

"It will. It has too" she told me loudly but I couldn't help think she was trying to convince herself as well.

"_Lucas I know you want to stay strong but it wont help" Ric said_

"_Why?" I asked._

"_Because we all have enough to worry about then whether you're dealing with things. It will help if we share our pain and get through it together." Ric said_

"_But aren't you scared" I asked him._

"_Yeah, I'm scared of what else is going to go wrong, I'm scared of living life without Cassie and I'm scared of dealing with this pain we all feel"_

**Ric p.o.v**

"Ric, why don't you go out and have some fun" Sally said as she walked into my room.

"Yeah, fine" I said heading out the door. I walked down the beach and bumped into Mattie. She was carrying a box and dropped it onto the floor before falling down next to it.

"I'm sorry" I said as I pulled her of the floor. It felt weird touching her hand again. I tucked her hair behind her ears and saw once again she had been crying.

"_Hey, Dalby, how's your little princess?" my friends all broke out into laughter. I couldn't handle it though. I slammed the nearest one into the locker and held them up against it._

"_Don't talk about her that way!" I shouted to them. They all stopped laughing and looked around nervously._

"_So come on guys, which one of you did it? One of you saw me talking to her, didn't you? That's why you went after her!" I shouted even louder still holding Ben up._

"_Sorry man but she's not good for you. We don't think you should talk to her" Mark said to me._

"_You can't tell me who I can talk to"_

"_You go and tell her you don't want to see her again or she'll get a lot worse than last time."_

"Ric" she took hold of my hand.

"I'm sorry Ric, so sorry" she began to cry. I wiped away some of her tears and let my hand cup her face.

"Don't cry Matilda" I told her.

"I miss you Ric, so does Lucas"

"I miss you guys too" I told her

"So why can't you forgive us?" she asked quietly

"Because I love you both and I can't handle being hurt again."

"_Hey, Mattie, are you sure you should be out so soon?" I asked her._

"_Ric, it's been a week, I'm perfectly healthy and I know I'm safe around you" I couldn't look her in the eye._

"_The thing is, I don't think we should talk anymore and don't call me Ric."_

"_Why?" she asked._

"_We're just to different, your princess Matilda Hunter and I'm bad boy Dalby"_

"_I don't care about any of that, I love you, and you're my best friend" she cried._

"_I do care though and I don't love you. Not even the tiniest bit" I told her._

"Ric we wouldn't hurt you again"

"You don't know that" I told her.

"It's weird being here like this again" she said to me.

"Are you thinking the same thing as me?" I asked her, knowing she probably was.

"That hurt so much and I didn't think I would ever trust you again. You broke my heart that night. The only thing that's different this time round is that it's my fault and you aren't bothering to pretend not to love me. "

"I broke my own heart as well" I picked the box up and gave it to her before saying goodbye and leaving her stood there.

"_You don't mean that" she said._

"_I mean it" I looked into her eye when I said it even though it hurt. I walked away and hid behind the trees. I cried as I watched her. She fell to the floor sobbing and didn't move. I watched her for three hours until her brother found her. She couldn't even walk properly because she was so sad and tired. He carried her away and I wiped my own tears away before leaving myself._

**Mattie's p.o.v**

I began walking slowly towards Brads. Ric seemed so lost and confused like he couldn't decide whether to take the chance with her and Lucas or to ignore them.

"Drew!" I shouted his name as I saw him. I began walking up the stairs towards Brad's door but continued to watch Drew.

"Drew!" I shouted again. He turned round this time and looked at me before continuing to walk. I sighed and wondered if he was ever going to talk to us again.

I concentrated on walking but as I stumbled I began to fall backwards. I let the box fall from my grasp and screamed.

"_Drew, please, help!" I shouted as I lay on the floor holding my ankle._

"_Awwwww, have you hurt yourself?" Drew ask ed. I smiled sweetly through my pain._

"_Look, Drew, I know we aren't exactly the best of friends" Drew laughed._

"_I'm willing to try for Lucas and Belle's sake ok. They want you in our group and I'm fed up of fighting, ok, so you win"_

"_Finally, the girl talks some sense come on then" Drew smiled and lifted the injured Mattie into his arms and began to carry her._


	6. Chapter 6

_Thanks for reading my story! If you have any ideas about it, please tell me. You can tell me how to make my story better as well if you have any ideas. Thankyou!!_

**Drew's p.o.v**

I heard her scream and turned round, she was lay at the bottom of the stairs. The things from the box had scattered everywhere and Brad appeared at the top of the stairs to see what was going on. He saw Mattie and ran down to her. I wanted to run away from her but my feet took me towards her.

"Mattie, are you ok?" I asked her. She didn't answer.

"Rachel's in Noah's, run and get her drew" I nodded at Brad and ran to Noah's.

"Rachel! Come, please, its Mattie she fell down the stairs at Brad's" I shouted as soon as Rachel came into view. She stood up and ran out followed by Alf, Tony, Martha and Jack. I watched them go and turned away from the door.

"_Tillybobs!" I shouted as I ran down the beach after her. She stopped and pouted at me which gave time for Ric to sneak up to her. She screamed as he picked her up and carried her towards the sea._

"_Ok, ok, you guys win, your better than women!" she screamed. Me and Lucas smiled proudly as Ric placed Mattie back on the ground._

"_Or not!" Cassie shouted as her and Belle ran over and jumped on Ric who then fell into the sea. The three girls then turned to Lucas and me. _

"_Run!" Luke shouted as we turned and ran down the beach._

"Why aren't you going back out to see if Mattie's ok?" Dan asked me.

"I don't want to" I informed him.

"I don't understand, you, Mattie, Luke and Ric are meant to be your best friends, so why are you ignoring them?"

"We're not the same people any more, what if they don't except me because Belle is not around, what if they blame me or hate me? What if things never go back to how they were?"

"They let you in the group for Belle but they liked you for who you were and are. They don't blame you for anything as it wasn't your fault and things may never be the same as you said you've all changed but your still best friends and you need to work things out together. Now go and see if Mattie's ok" I nodded and ran out.

**Ric's p.o.v**

I felt the need to walk towards Brads so I turned round. I arrived at the same time as Drew. I saw an unconscious Mattie on the floor and gasped.

"What happened?" I asked Drew.

"I don't know I just heard her scream and I turned round and she was at the bottom of the stairs. She must have tripped or something." Drew said

"Well when you know how she is will you tell her I hope she feels better soon" Ric said before turning away.

"Look, mate, I know I've been acting like a jerk recently but its just I was scared you guys wouldn't need me anymore" Drew said making Ric turn round again

"The funny things is we've needed you more than ever"

"I know I've needed you guys too and I'm here now. But I'm not going to give Mattie that message because you should be with her yourself. I know your hurt but she needs us at the moment. Look at her Ric. You can't just turn away from her. What if she never wakes up and you didn't bother to go and see her, how will you feel then? Stay with her Ric." Mattie was being put into the ambulance and Lucas had arrived.

"Drew, Ric, my dad was wondering if you'd need a lift to the hospital?" Lucas asked

"Yeah thanks mate, come on Ric at least come to just check she's going to be ok" Drew said.

"Ok" Ric whispered. The three boys walked to the car in silence and did not speak until they reached the hospital.

"_Mattie! Are you ok?" I asked as me, Drew and Lucas ran towards her and Cassie._

"_Yeah, it's Belle. She's been run over" Mattie cried._

"_What happened?" Lucas asked quickly_

"_I went into a shop and Belle and Mattie were waiting outside. This car came speeding towards them and Belle pushed Mattie out of the way but didn't manage it herself" Cassie said._

"_Is she ok?" Drew asked as he wrapped his arms around Cassie._

"_Yeah she's ok, I think she'd like to see you guys though" Rachel said smiling._

_The five of them walked into the room where Belle was lay awake on the bed. Mattie ran over and hugged her followed by Cassie. Me and Drew approached and gave her a hug followed by Lucas who sat next to her and grabbed her hand._

"_Don't ever scare us like that again" he said_

"_Thanks for saving me Belle" Mattie whispered._

"Is she ok?" Jack asked. Rachel had been crying but she tried to hide it as she came out to us.

"I'm so sorry guys. Mattie had a bad bang to her head when – if she wakes up she may not be the same Matilda as she was before." Beth shook her head and wept into Tony's chest. Jack sat down on a chair and put his head in hands. I continued looking at Rachel.

"N-no, b-but this can't be happening" Drew said

"You can go see her one at a time" Rachel said before walking away quickly.


	7. Chapter 7

_Thanks for the reviews!! A lot more drama is going to be coming up so please don't get bored of all the hospital stuff!! xox_

**Lucas p.o.v**

I walked into the room after jack came out. She looked so peaceful.

"Mattie" I whispered as I took her hand. "You have to be ok; I can't carry on with live without you. Not after everything we have been through"

I stroked her hand softly

"You're the best sister I could ever ask for. Me, dad and Jack were lucky to find you and your family"

_Mattie wrapped her arms around Jack when me, her, dad and Beth had walked in._

"_I'm so sorry" she whispered. Rachel and Kim stood watching._

_Jack cried and tightened his grip on her. _

"_Thanks for ringing" dad whispered_

"_We didn't no what to do, first he was shouting at us and then he just started crying and asking for you all. He's still finding it hard" Kim said_

"_I thought she loved me. I can't help being away so much it's my job" Jack said_

"_She did love you, she does love you, which is why it's so hard for her" Mattie told him_

"_Don't worry things will get sorted out" Beth insisted._

"You've done so much for my family, for everyone else in Summer Bay as well. You have to wake up Mattie; we need you to keep us together"

"_Me and Martha are back together" Jack announced. We all smiled and began hugging each other. I saw Mattie and Ric walk outside._

"_We did it" Mattie said happily_

"_I know, it was quite easy"_

"_What was?" I asked them. Mattie smirked._

"_Getting Jack and Martha back together"_

"_What did you do?"_

"_We just taught Jack how important family is" Mattie said before Ric continued_

"_And Martha how important Jacks job is"_

"_And how much they love and need each other" I hugged them both and smiled._

"_I love you both." I told them._

**Drew p.o.v**

I walked in after Lucas came out. A tear escaped as I sat down next to her bed.

"Don't tell anyone I've been crying again. I don't want to ruin my tough image"

I fell into silence for a bit and watched her.

"I guess I ruined my image anyway when I started hanging out with you lot. That was the best thing I ever did though. You've all been amazing friends. Thanks for being there for me. I should have been with you after all that stuff with Cassie, Macca and Belle happened. I'm sorry. I love you Matilda."

"_No way" I said as Matilda sat down on the floor in the corner._

"_I'm so sorry" Amanda cried._

"_They said she wrote notes for us all" Peter told us._

"_I don't want a stupid note that probably goes on about how sorry she is, and how she couldn't cope with what she did!" Ric shouted. Sally put her arm round him._

"_I just want Belle" he whispered._

"_Belle was in prison, Ric. She was lonely, scared and had to cope with all the guilt and grief alone. Did you really want her to cope with what she did for every single day of her life?" Sally asked_

"_No, she was are best friend we wanted to take it away from her even with are own problems. We loved her; we just wanted her to do what was best." Mattie answered for him._

"_Does that mean we don't mind that she killed herself, that we can't be angry or upset?" I asked Mattie quietly_

"_No it just means we can't hate her or blame ourselves"_

"Were you scared Mattie? I was. Not as much as I am now. Things are worse now. Lucas and Ric aren't talking. You and Ric aren't together. You can't be there for each one of us. We can't be there for you. I don't even know how my own friendship with Ric and Lucas is. If you die I won't be able to cope, not after losing Belle. If I told someone about my life they'd never believe it would they? You, Cassie and Belle always liked the attention. You have it now though Mattie, so its time to wake up" Drew stroked her face and watched her for a while. She didn't move. It was hard seeing her like that. Was it really time for Mattie to die?


	8. Chapter 8

I know its short but I am really busy at the moment. Thanks for reading and reviewing!!

**Ric's p.o.v**

"I don't want to go" I said as Drew walked out

"What? Why?" Lucas asked.

"I just cant" I ran out of the hospital and sat on a bench outside.

"You ok mate?" Kane asked as he sat next to him.

"What if she dies and we don't get the chance to sort our relationship out?"

"That's exactly why Mattie is going to pull through. She loves you and she wont give up on that just like you cant give up on her"

"I've been so stupid. I just kept pushing her and Lucas away when I needed them the most. I, Drew, Mattie and Lucas should have stayed together not pushed each other away. I thought it was best for me to stay away when Lucas and Mattie kissed but I should have trusted that they loved me and didn't want to hurt me"

"You still have a chance to sort things Lucas is here now and just believe that Mattie will be ok"

"Thanks for everything Kane you and Kirsty have been good friends recently"

"_Mattie, are you ok?" I asked running after her_

"_Fine!" she snapped._

"_Come on, I know your lying" _

"_You really want to know what's wrong with me?" she asked stopping and facing me. I nodded and wiped away a few of her tears._

"_Just go and ask your girlfriend" I turned around to look at her._

"_What did you say?" I asked_

"_I told her to stay away from you. I'm fed up of everything being about Matilda. I can't stand it anymore. It's either me or her"_

"_Its ok, honestly, I don't mind" Mattie whispered as she began walking away._

_I shook my head and followed Mattie again._

"_Mattie, wait, please, she's an idiot, I shouldn't have gone out with her anyway"_

_Mattie sat down on the beach and I sat next to her._

"_You should know that I would choose you over anyone else in this world"_

"_Why?" she asked_

"_Because you're my best friend"_

"_I don't want to be just your little best friend anymore. I'm fed up of all your girlfriends hating me and treating me like dirt. I don't even understand why they hate me" Mattie cried._

"_You're more than just my little best friend. Everyone knows that. That's why they hate you"_

"_I don't understand" she whispered_

"_I love you, more then just a friend"_

**Kirsty p.o.v**

"Heyhey, I can't believe your back!" I shouted pulling him into a hug. I glanced at the girl next to him and then at the other guy.

"This is Mimi and James, there old friends" he said. Mimi smiled warmly and flicked her long dark curly hair. James avoided my eyes and nodded slightly as a greeting.

"How's Mattie?" Mimi asked

"No change" I told them. We began walking slowly and bumped into Kim.

"Hey, are you ok?" I asked him.

"I'm just worried about Mattie, I always took it for granted that she'd be around and now I'm scared. She's like my little sister" Kim admitted.

"Yeah I know" I said hugging him. He smiled at the other three before wondering away.

"So how's life been away from Summer Bay?" I asked him moving the subject to something other than Mattie.

"It's been good I suppose, I have missed everything about this place. It's going to be hard to leave again"

"Don't then" Mimi said angrily.

"Don't start this again Mimi" he said. I looked at James to see if he knew what was going on but he just turned away.

"Sometimes I don't know why I bother putting up with you!" Mimi shouted before walking away quickly.

"I'm confused" I said.


	9. Chapter 9

**Lucas p.o.v**

I looked at the three people that were stood in front of me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked them.

"What do you think?" Henry snapped before walking towards his mum and Kirsty. I sat down and looked at Mimi. I didn't think I'd see her again or her brother, James.

"_How can you do that?" Mimi cried. I turned away from her feeling ashamed of myself._

"_I'm sorry; I guess I was just upset, I thought Belle was going to get with Drew"_

"_So now you want to leave with them all, get back with Belle and pretend nothing happened between us" I turned to look at her not knowing what to say._

"_I don't normally sleep with a guy after only knowing them for a week you know, just ask Matilda, we've been friends since we were 3. I really liked you Luke, I thought you liked me; I didn't want to just sleep with you and then move on. I wanted a relationship!" Mimi told me._

"_You deserve someone so much better then me" I whispered before walking out the room._

"She's awake!" Rachel ran out the room to tell us the news.

"Is she ok?" Beth asked.

"We think so but we can't say for definite yet" Kane smiled and hugged Kirsty.

"Beth, do you and Henry want to go and see her?" They nodded at Rachel and entered the room leaving the rest of us outside.

"I can't believe it" Ric said as he sat down next to Drew.

"It's amazing" Tony nodded in agreement with Jack.

"Well we knew she was a strong girl and she's just proved it to us" Kirsty said. Mimi wandered away down the corridor and I watched as James followed. It felt weird seeing her here. I didn't like it.

**Ric's p.o.v**

"_She killed Cassie and Macca?" I asked quietly not wanting to believe it._

"_Yes she was the driver of the car that crashed into them" Peter explained._

"_But no! Why would Belle do that?" Lucas stood up and looked at everyone._

"_All we know was that she was drunk but she won't tell us anything else"_

"_Well we could talk to her, find out the truth" Drew suggested._

"_She said she will only talk to Matilda" Peter admitted. Mattie shook her head and walked outside. I followed._

"So she's really ok?" I asked Rachel the week after Mattie had woken up. Rachel nodded as I was approached by Henry and Mimi.

"Mattie really wants to see you" Mimi explained. I took a deep breathe and walked into her room. She smiled when she saw me; I sat down next to her bed and took her hands.

"Is it possible?" she whispered.

"One day, we'll be together, one day" I kissed her hand gently and she shut her eyes.

"_Tilly, are you ok?" I asked sitting against the wall next to her._

"_I don't think I can go and see her, she killed Cassie. And Macca"_

"_Mattie, you know Belle would have had reasons for getting in that car and getting drunk. She needs you, just like we need the truth. Belle would never kill anybody on purpose especially not Cassie. You have to go and see her. I know you're scared but you need to do this" Mattie nodded and leant her head on my shoulder._

"_I love you" she whispered._

"_I love you too"_


End file.
